Hey News-Changers! Jackie here with The Breakdown. I’ve honestly lost track of how many days I’ve spent at home at this point, so it’s kinda weird to think about stuff continuing to happen out there in the rest of the world -- but it surely does!

Tuesday, Wisconsin voters had to make a tough decision: exercise their right to vote, or prioritize their health amid a global pandemic. This is how the state came to hold the first in-person election of the US coronavirus outbreak.

Ahead of the April 7 primary election date, coronavirus fears caused thousands of poll workers to drop out, forcing dozens of polling places to shut down, and potential voters were hesitant to risk contracting the virus.

Because of this, Wisconsin mayors called for the implementation of emergency mail-in voting measures. Gov. Tony Evers issued an executive order to postpone in-person voting until June 9 and extend absentee ballot access.

Voters who weren’t able to get absentee ballots in time, as well as those whose health conditions don’t allow them to participate in-person were effectively cut out of the election process. Those who did brave the in-person voting had to do so with severely limited polling places. In Milwaukee, only five of the city’s usual 180 were open.

The organization is sending thousands of surgical masks to the Tennessee Department of Corrections, Parchman Farm in Mississippi, and Rikers Island in New York. They’ll be used by correctional officers, health care workers, and incarcerated individuals to help stop the spread of COVID-19 within the facilities. It’s a part of a larger program from REFORM called SAFER Plan, which are policy recommendations for preventing outbreaks within the criminal justice system.

Advocates warn that the people who live and work within prisons and jails are particularly vulnerable during the coronavirus pandemic. These facilities are usually densely packed and have restrictions on movement and access that make following public health advice nearly impossible. The virus is already spreading through prisons nationwide, including California, New York, and Washington D.C., with hundreds of confirmed cases so far.

Take Action: We must protect the most vulnerable among us from COVID-19, and that includes the millions of people who are currently incarcerated in the US. Read and share this resource from The Innocence Project with ways to help.

The team is composed of volunteer clinicians, engineers, and manufacturing experts who wish to remain anonymous while they focus on producing enough ventilators to respond to the current COVID-19 crisis. They also plan to release their design in an open-source fashion, meaning that anyone will be able to access the research, build their
own system, and expand upon their work.

I’m obsessed with… rereading the YA novels of my teen years. I’ve been home in Arkansas for the past few weeks, which means I’ve had access to my middle school book collection, and it’s been a RIDE. My current read? Sucks to Be Me: The All-True Confessions of Mina Hamilton, Teen Vampire. A classic.